Two's Company
by avorialair
Summary: There comes a time when you have to accept the way you feel. On a unique planet, there’s an adventure that the Doctor will always remember, but never quite forgive. NineRose. [WIP]. [Summary Inside].
1. Prologue

Prologue

It wasn't exactly the place, so much as the circumstances. The place itself was fine. Beautiful, in fact. There were purple lawns and green skies, and trees that were made of fire that bled out into the atmosphere. There were chameleons left, right and centre, changing face, shape, colour and personality to match their mood. There were houses that bent inwards and backwards, houses that defied all the laws of physics Rose had ever been taught. There were streams that ran upwards into the sky and birds that dived between the fallings and the risings, singing beautiful songs that twinkled like notes on an organ-like oboe.

Nothing made sense in this world.

Then there were the thoughts. Feelings were the essence, they made up the world and people, changing them to suite the tide. Thoughts, however, were angry and colourless, violent creatures that tore through the world like a storm. They snarled at things that did not deserve to be there, taking the essence of happiness and light and tearing them into fragments of stars that burned.

Rose knew none of this when she stepped out of the TARDIS into a spray of sunshine. She knew far too much by the time she left.

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**Note**: Statistics of the story are on the first chapter, which will be up later today, after I have edited it. It sort of seemed to taint the prologue, considering it was longer. Hope you enjoy. 


	2. 1, Bad Man in the Sky

**Title**: Two's Company

**Author**: xxasktheangels/avoria

**Short Summary**: There comes a time when you have to accept the way you feel. For the Doctor, this might be sooner rather than later. On a unique planet, there's an adventure that he will always remember, but never quite forgive. NineRose.

**Long Summary**: The TARDIS knows best, as they say. When she lands the two time travellers on a planet few have been to before, the Doctor can but wonder if it is all together safe. When the locals start showing a particular interest in his Rose, he learns very quickly how far he would go to save her and how much he is willing to fight to get her back.

**Characters**: Ninth Doctor, Rose Tyler. A few Originals, but bleargh, what story hasn't?

**Disclaimer**: I own my muse. And my laptop. That's about it. I don't think I even own Christopher's voice in my head while I write the Ninth Doctor, because I'm sure it's trademarked somewhere. He is his own person, I believe. Damn him.

**Story rating**: The whole thing, so far, is a T. That might change. In fact, knowing me and my current mood on Rose and Nine, it may well do.

**Warnings**: This is unbetad. That doesn't mean I just write it and post it up, it just means that I'm the one who trawls through it about three times after I've written it, going through with a fine-toothed comb. The worst you'll find is a minor spelling error, where my spell-checker hasn't brought it up. Hurrah for self-editing!

**Genre**: Romance, Action/Adventure, Mystery, Supernatural, Angst, Sci-Fi.

**Spoilers**: None, so far as I know, but that may well change. I will warn prior to the chapter if that happens.

**Author's Note**: Well, I'm still writing Partners In Time, but felt like some Nine/Rose stuff in the meantime. This is by no means a big project, more what I'd call a short story. I was trawling through FF, various communities on livejournal, teaspoon... and I couldn't find anything that matched exactly what I wanted to read. So I wrote it. Sort of.

**Dedications**: This story is dedicated to two people. First, to LunaLovegood5, who used to be mad on TenRose, but then /cough/ got converted. So I've written some Nine stuff with what she might like in mind, too. Then there's Lillibetm3, who writes the most beautiful NineRose relationship I have ever read. We both love the Nine, I believe. So, there you have it, sentiments over with now.

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**Chapter One – Bad Man in the Sky**

"Right – any ideas?"

The Doctor was smirking at her over the central column of the TARDIS controls. She returned a happy smile, then gazed up to the ceiling in thought.

"How about... somewhere pretty?"

He made a face like a four year old who had been forced to eat brussel sprouts.

"No?" Rose giggled.

"Pretty?" he scoffed, slender fingers drumming heavily on the controls. "You can do better than pretty."

She nodded, furthered her thought on his instruction. The Doctor didn't press, simply stood there and waiting for his orders. Time was when he would have to just make up where they headed, find somewhere he thought would please her. He was almost always right. Now, of course, he wanted to give her the choice, wanted to satisfy her hunger. The universe was his piano, and he the pianist. Rose was the one who gave him his music now, and if she was lucky, he might even sing for her, too.

"Come on," he pushed eventually after she had been silent for too long. She shot him a look.

"I'm thinking," she half snapped.

The Doctor grinned. "Bet that hurts."

He ducked out of the way of the bolt she threw at him, making a mental note to longer leave around bits and pieces that she could hurl at him whenever she felt like it. Come to think of it, she had once berated him on leaving his mess all over the place after he'd had a go at fixing the TARDIS. He lost either way, it would seem.

"All right. How about somewhere inspiring?"

"Inspiring..." he murmured, folding him arms thoughtfully. "Inspiring for what? To write? Dance? Sing? Laugh? You have to be more specific, Rose, otherwise we'll end up at some sort of crummy arts festival."

It was her turn to pull a face. "Fine then, clever clogs, what have you got?"

He had been waiting for her to ask ever since he wondered if she'd wanted to choose the next place. His face lit up and he darted around to her, eyes wide with excitement.

"Somewhere beautiful," he told her, his smile never fading while he spilled out the place he had been imagining. "Somewhere that no one's heard of, that no one's ever been to before. A new experience, for both of us. Somewhere with lights and laughter and adventure that sits on the tip of your tongue. Oh yes, somewhere that enthrals the senses and takes them to extremes. Somewhere on the edge of a burning star that's just about to fade. Somewhere that almost has magic, in the sky, in the atmosphere. Somewhere that'll whisk you off your feet and hold you upside down, spinning you 'round 'til you can't tell what's up, down, side to side, or anywhere, anything, ever again." He paused a moment, his eyes glittering. "How's that sound to you?"

Rose considered it, biting down on her bottom lip. It was almost as though she were afraid to accept. The Doctor teetered on her bated breath, looking at her intently. He had never told her before of how he sometimes picked places to go, putting in specifications into the systems and letting his ship do the work.

Her mind had drawn a total and utter blank when he'd asked, save for five words. And she couldn't exactly go saying those, could she?

_Somewhere to fall in love._

She didn't know _why_ she thought them, not really, or why they were the first thing she thought of.

So, instead, she nodded and smiled.

"Sounds great, Doctor."

He, however, looked crestfallen. "You don't like it!" he whined, frown fluttering over his brow.

"What? Course I do."

"Rose, 'great' isn't a term women use when they like something. By saying 'great', you may as well say, 'You've failed; go hang yourself immediately'."

She arched an eyebrow, ignoring the temptation to fold her arms. "Oh, and you're such an expert on women?"

"Sort of, yeah," he shrugged modestly, turning slightly and wandering back around the controls.

"Come off it," Rose teased disbelievingly. "You've probably never had a date in your life."

"Have too," he shot back, casting her a cursory glance.

Rose snorted. "Ladies and gentlemen," she said to no one in particular, sweeping her hands to her side. "The Doctor does dancing."

He met her eye then, despite something inside his stomach warning him not to. "You have no idea," he murmured softly, but not so softly that she could not hear.

Her eyes widened, but he ignored it and looked down the controls again. He began tapping in the coordinates he'd set, hoping his TARDIS would deliver, as she usually did.

"So..." Rose coughed uncertainly. He didn't look up. "Expert, then, yeah?"

The Doctor had to hide a grin, then. She didn't want to let it go? All right then, cards dealt. He absently stroked a hand across the surface while he thought.

"Yup," he grinned cockily, looking up again. "Make women fall at my feet, I do. Or I could. It's my job to know these things, y'know. Just what makes you tick. And then some. Course, everyone's different, and there's always something new to learn along the way, some sort of tweak to be made to my calculations, some sort of surprise. But generally, yeah – expert in every field."

She cast him a sceptical look. "Right, and I'm supposed to believe you because...?"

He drummed his fingers loudly on the console and raised his eyebrows. "Why d'you think I spend so much time on the TARDIS? She's a woman too, y'know."

Rose gaped. She opened her mouth to say something, then blushed and closed it again, looking to the floor. The Doctor smirked, but hid it when she looked back to him again. Her blush was still there, as raw as a graze as she opened her mouth again.

Then she noticed his fingers had stilled and he was very nearly shaking with laughter. Her embarrassment turned to admonishment and she jabbed a finger in his direction.

"You're so... full of it!" she cried, almost angry, but not quite. He had played her because she had made it so easy for him, after all.

The Doctor shrugged. "Had you going, though, didn't I?"

"Least I know you was only kidding," she answered off handedly, gaze flicking to the floor. "Knew you didn't look the type to know a thing about it."

He made to answer, then changed his mind. There was only so far he wanted to take this game, and enough was enough. Time to set about their new destination, he supposed. He had a good few ideas, pictures in mind of the place he wanted.

_Or the person_, he thought before he could stop himself, but thoughts like that were instantly quelled and he cleared his throat, stiffening his demeanour. Without even looking up, he stated quite simply, "Pack a bag."

Rose blinked at him, her humour having seeped away through the holes in the grille floor.

"...What?" she asked quietly.

The Doctor's head snapped up almost immediately and he smiled to her fondly. "Oh, Rose, you daft thing. I mean pack a bag for where we're going. We might be there a while, and the TARDIS'll be inaccessible. She's a bit low on energy, will need to recharge herself." They watched each other for a moment and he softened his voice, looking at her pointedly. "You worry far too much about that sort of thing, Rose. And you needn't."

She gave a small nod and a shy smile, before turning and disappearing into the corridor.

Suddenly paling at the memory of the size of the bags she came back with from her mum's, the Doctor called out desperately behind her, "Pack a _small_ bag!"

If she heard, she ignored him.

xx

They stood in the open doorway of the TARDIS, gazing out onto the world she had brought them to. It was all the Doctor had said it would be, though he had no doubt otherwise. Grass shimmered in the blue breeze, each blade changing different shades of purple as it moved. In the distance, but close enough to hear, was the definite sound of waves rolling up a shore. Sky-blue dragonflies flitted around in the sky, darting and hovering, darting and hovering.

Rose was spellbound, the cool wind tickling her face and leaving droplets of moisture on her cheeks. This was obviously a place of nature, as tall trees were dotted around the place, their thick trunks knotted with wisdom, their fiery leaves and branches intertwined with each other. She gaped upwards, watching in awe as they grew. She could actually _see_ them growing, tangling up with their neighbours and spreading, a strange mist floating off into a green sky.

"This... is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen," she breathed in amazement, not sure what to drink in first.

The Doctor turned his head, looking to his Rose. She was framed between two particularly strong tree trunks, light from a rising sun spreading a golden aura around her, almost casting her into shadow.

He smiled to himself, then answered. "You don't say."

He locked up the TARDIS door behind them, then dangled the key in front of her. "These won't be useful to us until she's fully recharged. Just so you know."

She gave him a playful smile. "So what if we run unto trouble and have to dash back here?"

"Nah, wouldn't happen. This place is full of peace. There's no one here who'd want to chase us."

She hmphed as they began to walk over the grass, which sank slightly beneath her footsteps. "Yeah, and look what happened the last time you said that."

"Well, that was different. I half-knew they might get hostile."

Rose turned, gaping at him. "So you _knew_ they might come after me like that?"

"That isn't what I said," the Doctor countered quickly, keeping his eyes on his feet. "How was I s'posed to know they'd go mad for the stuff in your hair?"

"It's the last time I ever used that eucalyptus shampoo," Rose grumbled.

"I know."

He was secretly rather sad about that, and it wasn't entirely truthful to say he hadn't known they would want to devour the scent in her hair. He had known what scent it was. Another part of him had known the little tykes loved it. He just hadn't connected the dots.

Of course, telling Rose that he could guess her shampoo just from smelling it when he hugged her wasn't an option, so he kept quiet.

The two of them walked on in silence for a moment, Rose enjoying the colours that bathed them, the Doctor lost in thought. They hit the edge of the grass onto a dusty path, rounded houses dotted around that wavered like mirages in the desert. They looked liked huts more than houses, consisting of only one floor and a couple of windows. They were also not much taller than the Doctor.

Rose looked around them uncertainly, squinting into the bright light. He looked at her amusedly.

"Lost something?"

She turned back to him, shielding the sun from her eyes. "No, I was just... So, you haven't been here before?"

"Nope."

"And – there's nothing, sorta, wrong?"

He shook his head. "No."

"So..."

She glanced down to the floor again, shrugging the rucksack further onto her shoulder.

"Spit it out, Rose," the Doctor advised, folding his arms. She would have, except, she wasn't entirely sure what to say. He managed to worm out of her, eventually, that she was wondering what they were going to do. Truthfully, he had no idea. He had never come to this place before, didn't know its name, its cultures, its inhabitants. He trusted there was peace here, because he had asked for it. It didn't mean there wasn't the tiniest chance that they would end up running for their lives, though.

They didn't have long to speculate, either. One of the doors on the houses crept open and a small pixie-like alien, dressed in white robes, hopped out excitedly.

"Oh! There are guests!" He bounded out with a smile on his face, rows of tiny, sharp teeth in a supposing welcoming gesture. His voice, high and hurried, was difficult to make out, and he darted around the couple so fast that all Rose saw was a blur. "A man. And a woman. They come from far away. Must bring gifts. Do they come for the ball? Onro says they do. Onro says they come for the night and that we must show them the way. Come, come."

The little fellow stepped between a bemused Doctor and Rose, reaching up to take their hands and drag them towards the house. The Doctor seemed reluctant, and with it, Rose grew slightly worried. The pixie-alien turned sharply to look at them, pointed ears flapping with his speed. His beady, black eyes considered them for a moment, before he smiled again.

"You are guests," he chirped, his voice quick. "You must come. Time for the banquet; master and his fellows are all happy. Guests are welcomed, you have to come. Onro says the bad man in the sky will be angry, he will think, and then..." His eyes widened fearfully, a glimmer of gold suddenly flecking them. "Then we will be punished. Please, you must come. With me, now." He tugged at their hands.

The two exchanged a look and, with it, a silent conversation.

The Doctor gave in eventually, then looked down to the critter. "What's your name?" he asked gruffly, then felt Rose elbow him in the side. He shot her an incredulous look. Oh, God, she _liked_ the little thing, didn't she? She thought he was – he inwardly shuddered at the word – cute. So be it. He turned back again, forcing a smile into his voice. "Please."

The creature grinned wickedly, mischief evident in his ways. "Onro says angry man does not like it here. He will change his mind when the pretty woman proves him wrong."

He blinked, incredulous, and turned to Rose. "Did you hear what he just said?" he exclaimed.

Rose smirked, then eyed the leathery, patterned alien. "Yeah. I think he's sweet."

"You would," the Doctor scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Listen," he address the... whatever it was. "I'm the Doctor. This is Rose. Rose Tyler. We don't, er, intend to stay for very long, so thanks for the invite, but – "

The alien's eyes bulged and he dropped their hands, shrieking at the top of his voice as he began to bounce up and down. "It is he! It is the one with a title, the one who does not dwell! He leaves destruction, the angry man, he will die and we will live. The dark man in the sky shall be overthrown. Master must be told. Master will love of the angry man and the woman he brings." He paused a moment, considering Rose. "Such a pretty woman," he purred sickly.

Rose felt herself shiver, and it wasn't with cold.

"That," the Doctor said decisively, stepping between Rose and their new friend, "is quite enough of that." He looked down with a thin mouth. "I think we'll be on our way, ta, somewhere else."

"Else?" the alien cried, shocked and angry. "Else! The angry man thinks there as an _else_? There is here or nowhere! There is here or out there, with the wilderness and battlefields. We are safe here. Magic holds us safe, keeps us away from Them. But there is no else. There is here and there is death. Oh, but, ho-ho... angry man wants death. The angry man lives on death, on killing. He pretends he doesn't, but he does. He likes the laughter in his eyes, he likes the screams of those in pain. He killed all his own, just so he could hear them cry, and now he will kill the pretty woman, because he wants to hear her scream..."

Enough was enough.

Rose darted around and stood in front of the Doctor, looking up into his eyes desperately. He was shaking with anger, his shoulders tense, his hands balled into such tight fists his knuckles were turning white. His face had lost its focus and she could see, standing there, that he had completely lost himself. She had intervened to break the contact, because he seemed to be somewhere near an edge.

Taking matters into her own hands, she whirled around and knelt down, levelling herself with the creature.

"Look," she said tersely, using things the Doctor had told her in the past to avoid an unpleasant situation. "Go back to your house, yeah? We'll... we'll come in in a minute. Talk about this ball, or whatever. Okay?"

He nodded mutely, calmed a little again. "Onro likes the pretty lady," he said quietly, blinking and looking very much like he as all innocence. "Onro says the pretty lady will be honoured. She is welcome in the village. The angry man can stay outside."

"The Doctor stays with me," Rose shot back, in the sort of tone she had only heard him use. The alien looked a bit taken aback.

"But he is – "

"I mean it," she interrupted fiercely. "You want this ball thing, that's fine. But I don't go anywhere without him, so you're just gonna have to lump it, all right?"

She straightened without waiting for an answer, her hands on her hips and her lips pursed. He looked as though he might argue, but then sighed and darted back to the house, slamming it shut behind him. Rose let out a breath loudly through her mouth, then jumped to feel a hand on her shoulder. She turned to find the Doctor looking at her with a face as though blank as a slate.

"You didn't have to do that," he spoke quietly, dropping his hand.

Rose gave him a weak smile. "Think I sorta did. No one pushes my Doctor that far."

"It's not your job to protect me," he answered, giving her a look that was somewhere between regretful and thankful.

She wasn't sure what to say to that, a hundred different answers fluttering in her mind. Did that mean she'd overstepped some line, then? That she'd broken one of his unwritten rules?

When he gave her a gentle smile, she assumed not. Especially when he added, with the sincerest gratitude, "So thank you."

They smiled at each other for a moment or two, before Rose laughed through her nose and shook her head. "Don't think he's so cute anymore."

"First impressions can sometimes be a little off," the Doctor grinned, looking over her shoulder to the house. "This place is strange, Rose. I'm getting weird feelings off it.

She snorted.

"Couldn't have had those feelings _before_ we locked up the TARDIS?"

"We can go back, if you want. I mean, it'll be a bit useless, 'cause she won't go anywhere. And there'll be no food. Or electricity. Or, oh, come to think of it, probably no oxygen, either. But I'd rather stay with her than with Chatterbox over there." He jutted his chin out towards the house.

"Yeah, 'cept," Rose smiled, turning to look at the house too, "there's mystery here, Doctor. He's weird and he's scared. I don't think there's something quite right about this place."

"It's alien," the Doctor reminder her carefully. "What's irregular to you and I may be normal here. And vice versa. You really want to risk that?"

She turned slowly again, meeting his eye. She took in a breath, watching him, and worded, very slowly, "You're alien."

He gave a tight nod. "Yup."

"I forget, sometimes," she laughed. "Because we're almost the same. You're so like me."

"Maybe you're like me," he answered wisely, smiling. "Maybe I've changed you, and you're no longer Rose Tyler, but... someone else."

She gave him a playful look. "The Nurse, then?"

The Doctor's smiled quivered on his face as he bit back his laughter. "The Doctor and the Nurse," he tested, humour in his voice. Their eyes met and they both chuckled. "I don't think that would go down so well. Sounds corny. 'Sides, you should keep your name. It's got this sound about it that makes you want to say it, over and over again."

She blinked at him, suddenly not finding things so funny any more. "It does?"

He hesitated a moment, watching her with wary eyes. Part of him was screaming expletives and insults at himself, telling him to turn and run very, very fast back to the TARDIS and delve into knowledge. Another part of him, not so much.

"Rose Tyler," he said slowly, his tongue and lips caressing every letter and syllable of her name. "Ro-se Ty-ler. Rose, Rose, Rose..."

She shivered, rubbing her hands on her arms and glancing away. Why was it that no one could say her name like he could?

The Doctor grinned, oblivious – or at the very least pretending to be oblivious – to the fact of just how caught in the air Rose felt.

"See?" he chirped brightly. "Fantastic name. Now then." He strode past her towards the house, like nothing had even happened. "S'pose, if you think there's something so wrong with this place, we should find out some more about it. Ladies first?"

"Coward," she teased, stepping over to him.

He raised his eyebrows. "Every time."

He leant against the wall of the mushroom-like house while Rose knocked tentatively on the wooden door. It swung open and the alien appeared, looking rather flustered.

"Thixx has made space for the guests. Onro says it is stupid that Thixx is the one who sees them fast. Master should appoint them, not Thixx. But the pretty lady is welcome, if she keeps the angry man at bay."

The Doctor poked his head around the corner. "No fear, I don't plan on leaving her alone in this place for one second."

Thixx eyed him suspiciously. "The angry man will have trouble here if he thinks too much." And for once, there was warning rather than maliciousness in his voice.

"Right then, Thixx..." Rose said somewhat uncertainly, clearing her throat. She stood to full height, feigning pride. "Lead the way."

The Doctor's pride, as he followed her into the house, was not feigned at all. His own little Rose was coming into herself. Maybe this place wouldn't be so bad after all.


	3. 2, Corridors

**Author's Note: **This is one of those stories I started on the spur of the moment and now really wish I hadn't. Still, I'm not going to delete it (as it's only short), but I'm warning you now that this writing is far from my best. I think it's a little forced in places, but like I said, I wish I hadn't started it. Still, it will get as much as I can possibly give it, considering the circumstances. I never was good at making up aliens.

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**Chapter Two – Corridors**

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So far, he had tripped over three times and whacked his head on the ceiling beams once. The Doctor could usually cope when one of his senses was diminished, heightening his others. Yet, walking into a house which had no light – none at all – without warning would be a shock to anyone's system.

The metallic object on the floor he tripped over echoed around the house, like he had just kicked a water pail. He swore, only slightly, but was still greeted with persistent and irritating warnings from Thixx.

"Shhh! Angry man must learn to be quiet if he is ever going to survive in this place! You two must wait here. Thixx will lead the way downstairs, find light that you need."

There was a creaking sound of a door opening, and footsteps pattering hurriedly away into nothing.

The Doctor tutted loudly, shuffling along the floor without picking his feet up. His shoe caught in a hold in the floor and he stumbled again, this time careering forward enough to knock into Rose.

"Oi, watch it," she scolded in a hiss.

"Sorry," he mumbled, not at all sure if he meant it. It wasn't his fault if he couldn't see a hand in front of his face, was it? "Still think this is a good idea?"

"Shut up."

He smiled gently to himself when he heard the grin in her voice.

The Doctor's vision slowly crept back to him, his Gallifreyan senses aiding him as his eyes adjusted. He blinked and looked around, peering around the darkened, greyscale room. Such was Time Lord night-vision. Everything in here was minuscule. There were tiny chairs and tables, and the floor was absolutely littered with junk and strange shapes hidden under rugs. Not a speck of light shone from anywhere. It was strange, he mused, how bright and colourful the world outside was, and how sinfully boring it was in here.

Then his gaze shot to Rose and his breath hitched. Truth be told, he had not had much use for this vision of his, seeing as there was almost always light where he went. He had rarely, if ever, seen a human in such a way. But it was not the accentuated, paled curve of her cheeks, or the strange translucency of her clothes that caught his attention, but the spike that was jutting out just inches from the side of her head.

A very sharp spike, that glistened malevolently as he watched it. If Rose moved an inch or so to her right, she'd wound herself seriously. And his first aid supplies were locked in the TARDIS.

Careful, so as not to disturb her or make her jump, the Doctor edged along the floor to her.

"Rose, don't move," he ordered softly, and was surprised – if not mildly embarrassed – by the huskiness in his voice. He cleared his throat.

"Doctor, what – ?" She began to turn, but he cut across insistently.

"I mean it Rose, don't move a muscle. Hold still."

She did so, frozen in mid turn. Her eyes were on him, though he doubted she could see anything. His suspicions were confirmed when she frowned, and asked, "Doctor, where are you? What's wrong?"

He crept to her side then, slowly, looped his arm through hers and curled his palm to her wrist. She gasped in surprise, but he waited until he slid his hand down to hers and pulled her gently away from the wall until he spoke.

"It's dark in here," he offered thickly. _Oh, that's clever_, he berated himself mentally. _Charm her with your eloquence, see if she doesn't just fall at your feet._

It didn't help that he heard her giggle slightly, and he withdrew his hand.

"Er, sorry," he coughed, stepping slightly away. "There was something over there, on the wall. Nasty thing. Could have skewered your head, and then what would I have done?"

"Oh." She seemed a little put out, looking around herself somewhat uncertainly. She then turned, back to the direction he had been standing, and the Doctor smiled at the way her nose crinkled with thought. "I can't... see anything..." she said eventually.

"Well, no," he shrugged.

She stared towards the direction of his voice, eyes wide. "But you can?"

The Doctor nodded, then realising how fruitless that was, confirmed.

"How?" she asked, after a moment.

"Time Lord."

It must have been a sufficient enough answer, he supposed, because she didn't push the matter. Still, quite how being Lord of Time helped him with seeing in the dark, he didn't know. Maybe he'd eaten a lot of carrots when he was younger. Maybe he was nocturnal. He'd always wondered about that, actually. There was always a possibility that his people _could_ have been nocturnal – mind, that was possibly more to do with the fact that they barely slept. For good reasons, he reminded himself.

The Doctor was so lost in thought, he jumped when the floor just to the left of his foot opened. _A trap door_, he mused idly. _Because that's not suspicious, at all._

Thixx poked his head out of the floor and eyed him suspiciously, probably completely unaware that the Doctor could see every movement. Then his gaze fell to Rose and he looked almost hungrily at her, beady eyes narrowing and teeth baring. The Doctor felt an instant tension rise in his stomach, his need to protect her spilling out into balled fists and anger creeping across his face.

Still, Thixx opened the trap door completely and hopped out, leaving it open behind him. Warm light filtered gently through, adding colour to the Doctor's fairly bland vision. He smiled at Rose, briefly, who smiled back – no matter how beautiful she may have looked in shades of grey, he would take colour any day.

"You must be welcomed into the village," Thixx almost grumbled, pottering about the strange house. He picked things up, moved them, and put them down again. He peered under rugs and squeaked away from them, then blinked up appealingly to Rose. "There is space downstairs for the guests. Then there is the banquet, oh the banquet. Master will want the guests. He will like them very much. You must go, now, down and get ready. Thixx will come and get you; Onro will tell him when. Go on, go on." He waved towards the trapdoor with his claw-like arm.

Rose frowned at him uncertainly, looking up to the Doctor for his acceptance. He nodded. "S'pose we'll have to both go down. You first."

She made another crack at his cowardice, and for the moment, he let her think so. In a way, she was right. Because he trusted Thixx about as much as he trusted a Dalek, and look what happened last time he'd done that? Rose would always go in front of him so that he could keep an eye on her. If he left her behind, if something happened when he wasn't looking – well, quite honestly, he'd never forgive himself.

Not to mention the fact her mother would never forgive him, either.

The staircase was not so much a staircase as a rickety ladder. It shook with his weight and he swore the attachments were pulling themselves out of the dirt. Everything was so tiny. He had to squash himself up to fit through the ridiculous sized opening, and even then, he had to hold his breath. He skirted down the rest of the ladder with difficulty – only to turn around and come shockingly face to face with Rose.

"Hi," she said, somewhat awkwardly, trying to ease herself away from him. "There's, um... not much space."

She could say that again. The Doctor cast a glance around and was appalled at what he saw. The room – if he could call it a room – was hollowed out from the ground, dirt walls everywhere, with a few bits and bobs of tables and furniture. Width ways, it was not even a metre, more stretching in length than anything else.

Rose bent and picked her rucksack from the floor, which she had thrown down first, and edged along the room. There were rugs on the floor, but they didn't serve as much help, only getting dirty. Round doors were set into some of the walls, three in total. She edged into the centre of the room and around a tiny writing desk, heading to one of the doors. The Doctor shifted from one foot to the other, thankful for the lights that were set into the walls. They glowed warm orange, offering him good enough light to see – he didn't think he'd appreciate Time Lord Night Vision the entire time he was here. Took rather a lot out of him, like leaving your car headlights when you park overnight.

Thixx appeared by his feet from nowhere. He jumped and blinked down, folding his arms over his chest. The alien took no notice, bumbling over to the side of the room Rose was at. The Doctor watched him carefully, his suspicion not abating.

"You will stay in here," Thixx advised, pushing open the door hurriedly. "Thixx has made up good places to stay. The banquet, oh yes, the banquet and ball, they are soon. Very soon. Must get ready. Must shoo the angry man away and make sure pretty lady gets ready. Oh, yes, angry man not welcome. He brings the woman; Master likes the woman. Angry man stand, and watch, and – "

Thixx was shuffling back to the Doctor, now, attempting to hurry him out of one of the other doors.

The Doctor was having none of it. He stood with his arms folded, completely relaxed, and stared down to the little creature with venom. "I think you'll find," he said tersely, practically hissing out every letter like a serpent, "that I'll be coming to this ball, Thixx."

The alien looked up to him, astounded. "Oh, no, angry man cannot come. Master will not like it. Onro says that bad things will come, that the pretty lady will get stol– "

"Just try and stop me," the Doctor interrupted, eyes so concentrated on the creature it almost hurt. "Yours isn't a race for violence, I believe. Now, Thixx, forget all this ball stuff. Tell me – who's this master of yours?"

"He pretends he cares, but he does not," Thixx spat in return, his voice rising to a new pitch. "He pretends he wants to help, but Onro can see it. Onro can see he wants to burn us all. He... he wants..." Thixx's eyes widened and he stumbled backwards, crawling away as the Doctor's gaze followed him. "He wants to see me dead! He wants the whole world to burn at his fingertips! Oh, Onro was right. The angry man will kill us all!"

He wasted no more time down with them, instead scurrying desperately up the ladder and slamming the trap door shut behind him. There was a hollow click, then silence.

The Doctor hadn't moved a muscle, staring in shock. He turned on his feet to Rose, who was watching him with just as much surprise on her face, her rucksack draped over one of her shoulders.

She looked at him expectantly.

"What?" the Doctor asked, a hint of disdain in his voice. "I didn't do anything!"

"Sure you didn't, Doctor," Rose smirked sarcastically and before giving him a chance to answer, she turned and looked uncertainly at the door Thixx had pointed to. "Think we should go to this 'ball', then?"

He shifted from one foot to another. Much as he didn't want to admit to the fact that they were probably safe here – they couldn't exactly go back to the TARDIS and apparently 'somewhere else' wasn't an option – it didn't mean he wanted to do anything that might change that.

"I don't think we really have a choice," he sighed at last, after weighing up all his options.

"Don't sound so enthusiastic," she shot back with sarcasm. The Doctor was a little taken aback and stepped towards her.

"You're the one who wanted to come explore this place. It's a ball, Rose. Balls and Banquets – they're hardly my style."

Rose turned back to him with a slightly wary eye. "Yeah? Well maybe your 'style' can just shove it for the night, all right?"

He stood a moment, blinking with shock.

"What's got into you?" he asked quietly, because this wasn't the Rose who had woken up this morning in the TARDIS, he was quite sure.

"I... I dunno," she stuttered, looking just as shocked herself, and a little scared. She sniffed and shook her head, taking in a slightly staggered breath. It sounded a little more like his old Rose, at least.

"I think, the sooner we get out of this place, the better. The TARDIS will be all up and working in about fourteen hours: think you can hang on that long?"

"Depends. Think you can?"

The Doctor considered this, noticing just how tired Rose really looked. He frowned. "I'll be all right. Go on, go get dressed. I'll wait out here."

She smiled and stepped towards the door. One foot over the threshold, she turned, he eyes on the Doctor for a moment.

"Sure you'll be all right?" she asked eventually.

He gave her a smile for the sake of it. "Course. I have to be."

She nodded and disappeared behind the door.

His smile faded and under his breath, the Doctor added, "For both our sakes."

xx

The room was tiny, too – not that Rose expected much else. It was darker than the main room, but she could just about see enough to make out a shape on the bed she assumed to be the dress. Plonking her rucksack down on the floor, she reached for the material and held it up to herself. Even in the light, she could see it was pink. And very much like the sort of strange robes Thixx had been wearing, only with black patterns swirled onto it. She couldn't decide if it was charmingly beautiful or sickeningly hideous.

She wiggled out of her clothes and slipped the dress over her head. Instantly, she felt it change, felt it tighten in some places and loosen in others, like it was adjusting to her build. Rose mentally thanked herself for remembering to pack some make-up, and leaned over to the bed to reach for the right pocket.

It was then that she heard a strange sound, a whisper that sounded like a breeze in the trees. Except that it was forming words in a purring, eerie sort of voice.

"Such a pretty lady..."

She jumped and cast her eyes to the wall. She couldn't hear or see anything, but the hairs at the back of her neck had started to tingle. She straightened uncertainly, holding a mascara stick in her hand.

"Hello?"

There was no answer and Rose was about to shrug and let it go – until she saw it. Two little orbs, red and blazing on the far side of the room. They narrowed into slits, and the next thing she knew, something with claws was lunging at her and ploughing her to the floor.

She didn't even get the time to scream.

xx

The Doctor edged further around the room, examining the writing desk, the carpets, the lights in the walls, the ladder. Nothing seemed to be out of order which, somehow, made things worse. He found himself looking at one of the wooden doors, staring at it intently, as though he were drawn to it. Casting a look to the door of Rose's room, he stepped up to it and hovered a hand over it. It was just a sheet, no handle, no hinges. Was it really even a door at all? Something inside him told him he needed to look behind this door, and it wasn't like he was leaving Rose for any length of time. He wasn't even going anywhere.

He pushed it open.

All that stood there was a corridor that led into darkness, no lights on the walls to aid him. The Doctor glanced over his shoulder, then shrugged. She'd be all right.

He stepped into the corridor and followed it slowly. He had to duck down so as not to scrape his head on the ceiling, and he ran the line of the wall with his hand. It smelled of damp earth, but other than that, there was no sign that it even led to anywhere. As he got further away from the light in the room, his night vision began to bring up the faint line of the corridor ahead of him. It all looked grey, again, but he pushed on, even through the cold draught. Why would there be a corridor that didn't lead anywhere?

Then suddenly, before he knew it, he'd hit the end. That was it, just a wall of earth ahead of him and no way through. He sighed. So much for that.

The Doctor turned, making his way back along the corridor. He had not gone further than a metre or so when he hit another wall of earth. He put his hand against it and pushed, but it wouldn't budge. Turning back, he could see the other wall not far off. There was earth, everywhere, and no way out.

He instantly made a grab for the sonic screwdriver and lifted it to the wall. Quite apart from the fact that now he couldn't even tell which was the way he had come, nothing sonic would never work on the molecules of loose dirt anyway. But he had to try.

Then he heard a breeze, a sort of strange malevolent whisper from behind him.

"Such an angry man..."

He turned slowly, but didn't even get the chance to see what flung out and attacked him. He felt sharp pain shoot through his cheek and chest as something clawed at him; then he felt nothing as he sank to the ground, unconscious.


End file.
